


At Last

by diana_hawthorne (dhawthorne)



Series: Private Lives [24]
Category: Law & Order
Genre: F/M, Wedding Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-11
Updated: 2019-06-28
Packaged: 2019-10-26 08:35:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,091
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17742575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dhawthorne/pseuds/diana_hawthorne
Summary: Mike Logan and Liz Olivet get married. At last!





	1. Nick

**Author's Note:**

> See the end of the chapter for a brief biography of the characters in this series/fic, and how they connect to each other.

Despite the predictions for rain, the day dawns bright and clear. He’s not sure why he’s surprised--Isobel always gets what she wants, and good weather on their daughter’s wedding day is certainly one of the things she’s wanted the most in recent months.

They were thrilled when they announced their engagement, and Isobel especially was in raptures at the thought of planning a small backyard wedding. “Small” quickly turned into “small” if the bride and groom were the King and Queen of England. But Liz didn’t mind. It didn’t seem like Michael did, either.

The only thing that tempers the happiness they all felt was the fact this wedding was taking place more than fifteen years after they had imagined it. Michael had taken them to lunch one day, a long time ago now, and asked for their blessing. They gave it to him unreservedly, having come to realize that he was the one for their daughter. The next thing they knew, Michael was on their television throwing a punch, they’d broken up, and Liz had married Ben Stone.

He still regrets not stepping in to tell Liz she didn’t need to get married to him. She didn’t love him, not the way she needed to, and their erstwhile son-in-law had no idea who she really was. He wasn’t the only one who was relieved when she finally sought a divorce. His granddaughter told him, about a month after their divorce was finalized, that she was happy that she and her mother would be on their own. It hurt him, just as it hurt his wife and daughter, that she felt that way about the man who raised her.

Well, “raised” her was a bit of hyperbole. He had been minimally involved in her life and any decision made regarding her. He barely even spent holidays with them, preferring instead to see his daughter and her family. Sometimes he wonders if he had some sort of sixth sense, some knowledge that he wasn’t Caroline’s father.

He has no idea if Liz has shared the secret of her daughter’s paternity with anyone except Michael. His granddaughter certainly has never given any indication that she knows, and he and Isobel had been similarly circumspect when they found out, sharing only with Peter and Miranda. They knew their closest friends would never tell, and they needed their advice.

Peter said, ‘I can’t say that I’m particularly surprised. She’d loved Michael so much, and we could all tell that she wasn’t happy with Ben, and that she wanted a child. Why shouldn’t she reach for something she lost?’

And Miranda chimed in, ‘It doesn’t matter. I just wish that she’d divorce Ben, she doesn’t need him, we can help her with Caroline… she doesn’t need him.’

Isobel, too, ‘She’s our daughter. Our granddaughter. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for them. She did what she felt was right, I’m sure. And it doesn’t matter.’

They were right. It didn’t matter. It didn’t change the fact that they loved her and Caroline. It only made them more eager to keep them safe.

When they separated it was a step in the right direction, although it took over a year for Liz to ask for a divorce. At least he didn’t take anything from her. Liz always had far more money than Ben, but before her marriage he and Teddy and Peter had sat down and made sure that, if and when her marriage ended, he would get nothing. They tied up her assets and the apartment in trusts, kept Caroline’s educational fund completely separate, and otherwise Liz’s income from her practice and from consulting for the police and DA’s office wasn’t nearly enough to qualify her to pay alimony.

It’s different with Michael. They don’t have to worry about their marriage ending precipitously; they’ve waited years to be together and they won’t take it for granted.

‘Nick?’ Isobel says, entering their room. She’s been up for hours, he can tell, supervising the caterers and the people to set up the tent and the floor and the bartenders… he is in awe of her. She’s not yet in her wedding clothes, a beautiful light blue dress and matching jacket, instead in her usual weekend attire of khaki shorts and a sleeveless polo shirt, and flat espadrilles. She’s beautiful and he’s always known he was the luckiest man in the world to have her love. That was what they wanted for their daughter.

‘Everything is all set,’ she says, smiling. ‘I had Peter run into town and pick up things from the deli. Breakfast is downstairs in the library.’

‘You’re a marvel,’ he tells her, and she smiles.

‘I’m happy,’ she says. ‘I’ll go get Liz and Caroline; will you call next door and tell them that there’s breakfast in their kitchen? And remind them they need to be here at 10?’

‘Of course. So Liz and Mike aren’t seeing each other before the wedding?’

‘I think they’ve decided to wait, yes,’ his wife says. ‘I have to say, I admire their patience. I’m glad we snuck over to see each other.’

He grins, remembering their own wedding, right here, years ago. He’d been the one staying next door then, and he’d crept through the night and thrown pebbles at her window until she’d snuck down and met him in the gazebo… ‘I am, too.’

She leans forward and gives him a light kiss. ‘All right, I’ll get the girls. Hurry up, or the food will get cold!’

‘Yes, ma’am,’ he quips, and she shoots him a grin and turns to walk down the hall.

He leans over and reaches for the phone, pressing star then one to call over to his brother-in-law’s house. To no one’s surprise, they are off once again on some bizarre vacation--riding through the Gobi Desert, he thinks.

Teddy picks up the phone.

‘Teddy, your aunt wants me to tell you that there is breakfast in your kitchen, and to hurry up and eat before the wedding. We’re all meeting in the backyard at 10.’

His nephew laughs. ‘All right. Thanks, Uncle Nick. Tell Aunt Isobel she’s wonderful.’

‘She knows,’ he tells him, amused. ‘See you soon.’

‘Yep,’ he agrees, and they hang up.

As he makes his way downstairs, he can hear the hustle and bustle of wedding preparations towards the back of the house. Nina must be supervising while Isobel gets their daughter and granddaughter breakfast. He can hear them in the library, and hurries his last few steps to join them.

‘Daddy,’ his daughter says, smiling. He steps forward and enfolds her in an embrace, then smiles at his granddaughter.

‘You look beautiful, Liz,’ he says, and she does, she’s radiant and glowing. He’s never seen her so happy before. Caroline is too, beaming. It’s the first day of a new life for them.

‘Thank you,’ she says.

They sit down at breakfast together and he looks around the table to smile at them. His family. He is so lucky.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Liz's Family**
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
>  _The Olivets_  
>  Nicholas Pratt Olivet: Liz's father, who goes by Nick. A shy man, he is the Chairman of the family bank started by his grandfather. He is married to:
> 
> Isobel Griswold Olivet: who grew up on Contentment Island in Connecticut, where she and her husband now live. Isobel has one brother and is particularly close with his four sons. She and Nick have one daughter:
> 
> Elizabeth Griswold Olivet: a psychologist who specializes in victimology. She occasionally consults with the District Attorney's office and various police precincts, which is where she met Mike Logan.
> 
> Caroline Griswold Olivet (b. 1999): is actually the daughter of Liz and her former boyfriend, Mike Logan, during a brief reconciliation, though she has only shared the details of her daughter's parentage with Mike and her doctor.
> 
>  _The Griswolds_  
>  Teddy and Chrissy Griswold: Teddy works at the family bank, Chrissie runs a gallery. Chrissy and Liz were at school together, and Teddy is Liz's favorite cousin. They have three children: Jack (b. 1991), Henry (b. 1994), and Eliza (b. 1998). They live three blocks away from Liz in the city.
> 
> Bill and Margot Griswold: Bill works in advertising and Margot is a teacher at a private school in the city. They have two children, Owen (b. 1992) and Toby (b. 1993).
> 
> James and Alice Griswold: James is a stay-at-home dad and Alice works as a broker. They have twins, Oliver and Tucker (b. 1998).
> 
> Charlie and Beth Griswold: Charlie is the black sheep of the family. He's a travel writer and is constantly out of town, while Beth works at Chrissie's gallery. They have a daughter, the youngest of the grandchildren, Georgina (b. 2000).
> 
>  _The Others_  
>  Peter deVries: Nick Olivet's best friend from Deerfield and Yale. They have remained best friends all their lives and is Liz's godfather. His partner is:
> 
> Miranda Darby: who met Peter at Yale when she and her Farmington and Barnard roommate, Isobel Griswold, went to the Harvard/Yale game. She has remained best friends with Isobel ever since.
> 
>  
> 
>  **Mike's Family**  
>  Mike Logan: former Homicide and Major Case detective. He retired the previous year and proposed to Liz six weeks after getting back together with her while they were on a trip to Scotland together. He has two siblings. His sister is:
> 
> Katy Logan O'Connor, his sister, who is a year younger. She is a dressmaker and is married to:
> 
> Pat O'Connor, who manages a grocery store. They have two children:
> 
> Tommy (b. 1988) and Eileen (b. 1993).
> 
> Pete Logan is Mike's brother, three years younger than Katy. He's married to Moira, and they have three children:
> 
> Rory (b. 1986), Orla (b. 1988), and Deirdre (b. 1990).
> 
>  
> 
>  **Other L &O Canon Characters**  
> Judge Jamie Ross: a New York Superior Court justice and good friend of both Liz and Mike. Jamie has one daughter,
> 
> Katie Gorton, whose father is infamous defense attorney/shark Neal Gorton. Katy's stepfather is:
> 
> David Russell (he doesn't have a last name or profession in canon), who is a photographer for Conde Nast.
> 
>  
> 
> More character bios will be added as people are introduced!


	2. Katy

She takes her cup of coffee out to the small patio tucked between the two wings of the guest house and pulls out one of the wrought iron chairs. The patio faces the lawn directly from where the guest house is tucked in the woods. From her vantage point, she can see the tent behind the main house, filled with activity, and the Sound further down the sloping lawn.

She never expected she’d be in a place like this. A bed and breakfast in the Hudson River Valley for their anniversary, maybe, but… not someone’s house, and not the house of her soon-to-be sister-in-law. Well, her parents, but still. And she sure as hell didn’t think that Mike was ever going to marry someone like Liz.

Their mother would be sick with jealousy if she was still alive. This is what she always wanted for herself--she was going to go to college and then she got pregnant with Mike, and she had to get married to their charming, hapless father. And then… well, Mike took the brunt of her anger throughout the years, and got out as soon as he could, but… he never felt like he deserved anything good. That’s what broke them up the first time, she knows. And now… well, she’s never seen him so happy.

She likes Liz. She always has, from the first time Mike brought her down to their apartment for Sunday brunch, but they come from two totally different worlds for all that they live on the same island. She and Pat are lucky that they can scrape together enough to send Tommy to City College, and Eileen was smart enough to get into Stuyvesant High, but Liz… she sends her daughter to a school that costs more than thirty grand a year for elementary school, half of what she and Pat bring home. And her apartment--! She remembers going there for the first time, pregnant with Eileen and suffering from all-day morning sickness, after Liz was raped by her doctor. Mike had called her, begging her to go uptown and keep her company, and she had agreed, surprised and disturbed by the panic in her brother’s voice.

She’ll never forget the way she was during that time. She was… withdrawn, sleepwalking through life, unable to make conversation or respond to her in anything longer than a single word answer. Her heart went out to her, and she tried to help her, but she also couldn’t help being jealous of her massive three-bedroom apartment when they were in their tiny two-bedroom in StuyTown, with one very active toddler and a baby on the way.

She shakes her head to clear the lingering clouds of jealousy and turns back to her coffee.

Even though they were friends, she was intrigued by her, by her life. She often saw her and her family in the society pages and, long after she and Mike broke up, she pored over the wedding photos that had been published in Quest Magazine, a copy of which she’d bought at the Strand, guiltily, and hid from her husband.

When Mike started seeing Carolyn, she’d thought that they’d end up together. Carolyn was the right sort of person for him, she thought. She grew up like them, minus the abusive parent, but in the same economic background. She was a cop, too, and loved Mike. She was good for him. For the first time in a long time, she’d watched her brother get back to himself.

But he surprised her again. He’d retired, broken up with Carolyn, and got back together with Liz all within a month. And when he came downtown to tell her what had happened, he told her he was going to Europe with Liz and Liz’s daughter and that he’d be back in a couple of weeks. When he came back, he took her out to lunch and told her that they were engaged and that Liz’s daughter was his, too.

Now that had surprised her and angered her, and she was still angry, now, thinking about it. He’d told her the circumstances around her conception and birth but… God, Liz should have gone to his apartment and told him if he wouldn't pick up the phone and gotten a divorce and… 

She takes a deep breath.

She’d insisted on meeting Caroline and Mike had obliged, bringing her down to StuyTown to meet her. And… she was beautiful. Her niece. She looked like Liz, so much so that she was startled, but she stood and walked like a Logan, and her expressions were Mike’s, too, and she was filled with anger afresh at Liz for keeping her daughter from her father, and from her, too.

She runs a hand over her eyes. No matter how justified her anger was, it’s none of her business, and it’s not going to change the past. She can make an effort, here, and get to know her niece. And since Mike is marrying Liz, Caroline will think of her as her aunt, though she won’t know how true that will be.

Her coffee is getting cold, but she lingers on the patio a little while longer. She’s relishing the quiet, the chance to be alone--such a rare thing in her life. She needs to get dressed soon, but she still has time. At least she doesn’t have to chase after her children today. Tommy, after meeting Katie Gorton, the judge’s daughter, at the rehearsal dinner last night, had spent an hour in the bathroom this morning getting ready. She only hopes this isn’t another Mike and Liz situation. Girls like Katie Gorton--rich parents, an Ivy League student--aren’t for her son. And her daughter… well, Eileen’s head has been turned by Liz’s endless nephews, all handsome, all well-mannered, and she’d fought her brother for the bathroom. When she’d emerged, her little girl looked like a young woman, beautiful and full of promise.

She doesn’t want to lose her children to a world she can never join.

Draining the rest of her coffee, she places it back on the saucer and heads into the kitchen. Pat has disappeared, too, probably over to Liz’s cousins’ house with their children. She’ll need to join them soon.

She takes a short, hot shower, then cleans the mirror of steam and looks at herself critically. She’s a year younger than Mike, two years older than Liz, but she looks easily a decade older than her almost-sister-in-law. She hasn’t had that difficult a life, but it’s also not been easy, and that shows in the lines of her face and the streak of white in her hair. She'd thought about getting her hair dyed but after buying their wedding outfits there wasn't any money to spare. At least she saved on the cost and made her outfit and Eileen’s. She’s proud of the two outfits, which easily fit in among the thousand-dollar attire of Liz’s friends and family. They look good, and Pat and Tommy did too. She's proud of them. 

Her outfit--a burgundy wool skirt, silk blouse, and matching shawl--is hanging in the closet. Burgundy has always been a good color for her, and she does want to look her best. She gets dressed quickly but carefully, slipping her feet into low-heeled black pumps, an old but carefully shined pair. There. She looks good.

She checks the clock on the dresser. Nine thirty. They need to be at the main house by 10. Liz had told her that she and Eileen were welcome to come over before ten--‘I’m afraid it will be women only until then, Daddy and Peter will be sequestered in his study’--and because the rest of her family is clearly occupied, she may as well go to see her sister-in-law. After all, they’ll be family in just a few short hours.

That decided, she gathers her things together and texts Pat, letting him know where she’ll be.

 _See you soon, love you!_ he texts back as she leaves the guest house.

She sighs. She’s lucky. She has a wonderful family. She just hopes that Mike has the same.


	3. Isobel

‘So, darling, do you need help getting dressed?’ she asks her granddaughter as they finish breakfast.

‘Eliza is coming over with Aunt Chrissy in a little bit and we’re going to get dressed together,’ Caroline says. At eleven, she’s still a child, and she has her parents’ height and her mother’s slimness. She’s beautiful and so much like Liz at this age it gives her pause sometimes. She prays every night that Caroline’s life will be smoother and happier than her mother’s has turned out.

At last Liz is happy. And getting married today! to a man who loves her more than anything. To a man who loves her--their--daughter. Finally.

She looks across the table to her daughter, who is sipping a cup of coffee as she watches her own child. She looks so happy it makes her heart glad. 

‘What about you, Liz?’ she asks, and her daughter’s grey gaze turns to her, filled with such love it fills her with joy. They’d had a fairly distant relationship by the end of her twenties, but that changed as the years went on. When she’d introduced them to Michael and it was clear that she was in love with him, it was a wake-up call to her to look at her daughter. She’d wanted the world for her, but her idea of the world and Liz’s had been at odds. Her daughter was independent and self-sufficient; she didn’t need her to give her anything but her love and support. Once she realized that, their relationship eased into one of trust and love. It proved, throughout the years, to be the best blessing she could ever receive.

‘I’d love that, thanks Mummy,’ she tells her, and it fills her with happiness to be wanted even if she’s not strictly needed.

Breakfast passes in a blur, broken only by the grandfather clock chiming 8:30 and a knock at the door.

‘I’ll get it!’ Caroline yells, and scrambles for the front door, opening it to her aunt and cousin. ‘It’s today!’ she exclaims, and Chrissy laughs as her daughter and niece pull each other into a hug.

‘You’d almost think you were the one getting married,’ she jokes.

‘No, this is better,’ Caroline says seriously. ‘Much better.’

Liz comes up behind her daughter and gives her a big hug. ‘Are you sure you don’t need our help?’

‘It’s your day, Liz--let me help the girls with their hair and things,’ Chrissy says, beaming at her close friend and almost-sister-in-law. ‘I’ve brought my dress with me so I don’t have to run back to the other house. When is Audrey getting here?’

‘She’s staying with Charlie at the club, they should be here any minute.’

‘Well, why don’t you start getting dressed, and I can send her up when she gets here?’ Nick offers. ‘Charlie can stay down here with me and Peter. I expect Teddy and Mike will be over shortly in any case.’

‘You need to get dressed, too,’ she reminds her husband.

He sighs but smiles. ‘All right. I’ll run up and get changed now, and then when he gets here we can stay down here.’

‘Perfect,’ she tells him, and he grins at her, bounding up the stairs in a motion that belies his nearly 80 years.

‘We’ll wait downstairs--Liz, it’s your day! Go get dressed!’ Chrissy chides her, and her daughter gives her a hug.

‘Thanks, Chrissy,’ she says, before turning to her daughter and niece. ‘Thank you both for being a part of our wedding. I love you both so much.’

Caroline is the first to throw her arms around her mother, hugging her tight.

‘I love you, sweetheart,’ Liz whispers.

‘I love you, Mommy. Now go get dressed!’

Liz laughs and heads up the stairs. ‘I’ll see you both soon.’

She checks with Chrissy to make sure she has everything she needs, and Miranda emerges from the kitchen to chivvy her away and up to Liz. 

‘I've got it all under control,’ her best friend tells her. ‘I'll check the place cards, Nina is making sure the caterers have everything, and Peter has run next door to get the ring from Mike. We're fine. Go be with Liz.’

She gives Miranda a quick hug and heads up the stairs to Liz’s room. She can hear Eliza and Caroline giggling while Chrissy directs them into their dresses. She pauses in the hall to look out the window to the backyard. The tent is up and everything looks fine. She's so grateful to have people she can trust to supervise so that she can take a few moments to be with her daughter. 

It feels different this time around. When Liz married Ben… well, they'd had the big white wedding at the church, reception at the yacht club, and through it all Liz was calm, serene, unruffled, and unemotional. Today--today is a different story. She is incandescent, radiant, with happiness. She’s so grateful to Michael for making her daughter--and her granddaughter--so happy.

Liz’s door is closed, so she taps on it gently before opening it. Her daughter is sitting on the windowseat, looking down at the tent on the lawn, the sea shimmering and glittering in the background.

‘It’s a beautiful day,’ she says, and Liz turns and smiles.

‘It is. Thank you.’

‘For what?’ she asks.

‘Well, the weather for one thing--somehow I think you had a hand in it.’ Liz laughs, a happy, light sound that she loves. ‘But for everything, really, Mummy--I’m so grateful to you and Daddy.’

She crosses the room in a few steps and takes her daughter in her arms. ‘We’re grateful for you, darling, and Caroline and Michael.’

Her daughter shifts and holds her tight. For a moment, she can believe that this is any time in her life--when she was born, before her first day at Chapin, when she was leaving for Farmington, and for college, and after she was--she cuts her thoughts off there, not even wanting to think about the sad times of her life.

‘Let’s do your makeup first, darling, then get dressed,’ she says, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

‘All right,’ Liz agrees.

Liz’s dress is hanging on the back of the closet. It took them a long time to find something that she was comfortable with--she didn’t want anything poofy, or too tight, or even a long dress, so that ruled Kleinfeld’s out. After spending weeks searching, Miranda had finally found something at Ralph Lauren, and Liz had gone the next day to try it on. They knew it was the one.

It was a simple dress made from ivory silk, hitting just below the knee with a full skirt, but they’d taken it to the tailor and when they were done with it it was perfect. She’s loaning Liz a pair of sapphire earrings for her something borrowed and something blue, the dress was new, and her engagement ring was her something old. She’d bought low-heeled shoes which were dyed to match the dress, and everything together--it was perfect. She looked perfect.

‘I don’t want to wear much makeup,’ her daughter says, pulling her out of her introspection. ‘Just what I usually do.’

She nods. She didn’t need makeup and never wore much, just some mascara and lipstick usually. Liz leans forward and starts applying her makeup while she settles in the slipper chair at the foot of the bed and watches.

She’s relieved that they finally found their way back to each other. Finally… just thinking about everything they went through, even though, more than a decade later, she still doesn’t know why they broke up… it makes her so happy that they found each other again.

This weekend has been lovely already, and today promises to be more so. She did get a little out of hand with the wedding planning, she’ll admit, but she was so excited to finally plan this one… 

Well, she didn’t get completely out of hand. Michael took charge of the honeymoon plans, which are still a surprise to Liz. Liz wasn’t even allowed to pack, so she did her packing for her, and everything is all ready for them tonight. She smiles at the thought. Michael had spent the past year sneaking up to learn how to sail the Selkie so that he could whisk Liz away for a week. He had some basic skill left over from the years they’d been together, but Nick made sure he could captain her by himself, even though Liz of course would be there too. It was a romantic gesture and she can’t wait to see Liz’s face when she finds out.

Liz is brushing her hair now, choosing to leave it down and loose on her shoulders. She puts her earrings in, leaning forward to look closely in the mirror, then smiles at her reflection.

‘You look beautiful, Lilibet,’ she tells her, and Liz smiles.

‘You haven’t called me that in a long time.’

‘Well, you were very insistent on no nicknames from the age of seven… we wanted to respect your wishes. But I think you can indulge me today.’

‘Of course I can,’ she tells her, turning to face her. ‘I love you, Mummy.’

‘I love you, my darling.’

The clock in the hall chimes nine thirty, breaking the moment.

‘I need to get dressed,’ Liz says, standing up.

She stands, too. ‘So do I. Do you need any more help?’

Liz shakes her head. ‘No. Thank you, Mummy.’

There’s time for one more hug, a tight one, before they pull back. ‘We’ll see you downstairs.’

She smiles. ‘All right. Thank you, again.’

She kisses her daughter’s cheek before letting herself out of the room, smiling to herself.


	4. Pat

He’s still feeling the aftereffects from last night’s extra couple glasses of whiskey. He’s not thirty any more and he doesn’t have more than one drink at night during the week. Last night was an exception--a beer at the bar before the dinner, wine at dinner and champagne for the toast, and then a whiskey or two with Mike and Pete last night on the patio. He wasn’t hungover, not really, but he’s not feeling his best. Well, nothing another cup of coffee can’t fix.

Katy’s at the guest house and he and the kids headed over to Liz’s cousins’ place for breakfast. The kids head off with the other kids as soon as they arrive and he makes his way over to Mike, Pete, and Liz’s cousin Teddy.

After they exchange greetings, he asks, ‘So, you nervous?’

Mike grins. ‘Not at all. It’s the best day of my life. I just can’t wait to see her.’

He’s touched by Mike’s certainty. He and Liz had certainly had a rough go of it, but it seems to be smooth sailing now. He’s glad of it. They both deserve to be happy, and their daughter--well, she deserves a family. She’ll have it, now, even if she’s unaware of it.

‘So you didn’t sneak over to see Liz last night?’ Teddy asks.

The groom barks a laugh. ‘I wanted to, but she was insistent that I didn’t. Said we’d come too far and she didn’t care if it was superstition, she wasn’t gonna let anything ruin the day.’

‘Sounds like Liz,’ Teddy says, laughing. ‘She always says she’s not superstitious but I’d bet you anything she’s got the something old, something new stuff down.’

‘Yeah,’ Mike agrees, taking a sip of coffee. ‘I know she does.’

‘What are you guys doin’ for a honeymoon?’ Pete asks. ‘Are you allowed to tell us now?’

Mike grins again. ‘We’re borrowing Nick’s boat and sailing around for a week. I’ve spent the past year learning how to sail the damn thing, and I have to say--it’s pretty fun. She still doesn’t know, though, so don’t tell her.’

He’s surprised--he had no idea Mike bothered to learn how to sail, let alone just to surprise his soon-to-be wife.

‘Well, good for you,’ Pete tells him. ‘But how is she gonna pack if she doesn’t know where you’re going?’

‘Isobel and Chrissy are taking care of it,’ Mike tells them. ‘And Teddy helped get everything ready on the boat.’

‘Happy to help,’ he says, grinning. ‘Also, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Chrissy this excited for anything, not even our wedding.’

They laugh, and Pete asks a question about sailing, and he lets himself tune out.

Katy’s been a bit on edge in the weeks leading up to the wedding. He knows that she’s still so angry at Liz about Caroline, but she’s deliberately ignoring the fact that by the time Caroline arrived Mike was in a bad place. He’d been in a bad place for years, and if he was Liz… well, he didn’t blame her as much as Katy did.

He also knows that she’s been edgy because she feels uncomfortable. Hell, he does too, but his kids seem to be doing fine, and anyway, Liz’s family has been more than welcoming. They don’t need to feel awkward. He knows that doesn’t matter to Katy, though. She’d stayed up late the past month and a half making her outfit and Eileen’s, and tailoring his suit and Tommy’s, wanting them to look good. They did, and he's grateful, but he still thinks it doesn't matter. The important thing is that Mike is happy.

He’s known the Logans all his life. He grew up two buildings down from them, was in the same class as Mike in school, and when they started noticing girls Mike chased anything with a skirt while he only had eyes for Katy. They’d gotten married when she was eighteen and he was nineteen; Mike had brought a date to the wedding and left with someone else. That was pretty indicative of his relationships with women… until he brought Liz to meet them one Sunday.

He was crazy about her, anyone with eyes could see, and anyone could see that she was equally crazy about him. It surprised them--that someone like her could fall for someone like him--but fall for him she did, and she was the woman who dragged Mike out of the morass into which he’d fallen.

He’d loved her. He’d dragged him along to buy her an engagement ring and made him promise not to tell Katy. He hadn’t, and Mike had finally chosen a ring--the one she has now. And after they’d broken up… well, the person he was before had nothing on the Mike who’d been sent to Staten Island, who wanted to rival Casanova in number of conquests. When he’d got together with Carolyn, both he and Katy thought, yeah, this is good for him. He’ll be happy. But even though he’d obviously loved Carolyn, what he felt for her had nothing of the sheer rightness of what he and Liz had. He’d obviously come to the same conclusion, because they’d gotten back together, and now they’re getting married.

‘Ready to go?’ Mike asks him, pulling him out of his thoughts.

‘Yeah,’ he agrees. ‘I’m ready.’

‘Me too. I can’t wait,’ he responds, grinning. ‘Finally.’

‘Finally,’ he echoes, and gets to his feet, ready to head up to the big house.


End file.
